Vermont Vacuum Alert!
Deborah Orin elaborates in the NY Post - 'Liberal' Dose of Vermont Could Doom Dean:

The buzz in Democratic circles is whether anti-war 2004 contender Howard Dean is the new George McGovern. Maybe it should be whether he's the new Mike Dukakis.

Dukakis was the governor who boasted of a "Massachusetts Miracle" when he ran against the first George Bush in 1988 — only to see it get derided as the "Massachusetts Mirage."

And some Dem rivals, as well as Republicans, believe Dean's record as Vermont governor could be just as vulnerable. Maybe the "Vermont Vacuum" instead of the "Vermont Vision."

Some highlights:

Rivals also question Dean's temperament, pointing to his 2001 boast that he once vetoed a record 13 bills just because he was mad at state lawmakers.

"It wasn't necessary for me to do that," he said. "I was just so angry with them. I just thought they were too big for their britches."

Some challenge Dean's claim that he, as a doctor, made dramatic progress in getting health-insurance coverage for Vermonters. Rival John Kerry claimed at a May debate that Vermont's coverage rate was 90.5 percent before Dean took office — and 90.4 percent when he left. Dean disputes those figures.

Wotta guy! But it's really unkind to say such things about Josiah.